prep for a second interview 3

[1084]

A little nervous. I went to an interview for a computer tech job. It went really well considering I can cover all the duties on the job description. An A+ cert, or = experience is recomended. I have = experience. So, now they want me to come in for a second interview. Has anyone been through a simular experience? What should I expect, and how can I prepare?

 

[Xeroid]

Relax, go with the flow, sounds like they want more in depth from you and/or are assessing how you would personally fit. Thats very promising. There may be some test, OPQ or whatever, just be honest with it, don't try to be 'clever'. Listen for the clues that let you follow their line of questions but don't babble with your answers, pays to think a bit before you answer.

Good luck

 

[nctechno]

You didn't list any of the "job descriptions" but from experience I can say that they might give you a "hands-on" test. Meaning, they may troube-shoot a system and have you diagnost the problem. On this interview, my buddy as asked to find out why the CD rom was not seen by Windows. The answer was the BIOS setting had the secondary IDE disabled and the CDrom was set secondary master. Bottom line, don't try to snake your way out of something you don't know or are not acquanted with. If they present you with a piece of hardware you have never seen or worked with, tell them so. On my second tech job I didn't know what a passive backplane was and I still got the job at this high tech company. By all means, ground yourself before you touch any hardware.

Good luck.

 

[orypecos]

Find out everything about the company and then ask questions about everything except benifits. The more talking they do the less time you talk and dig yourself a hole to fall in and not get the job.
Follow the 5 o clock crowd from the company to the nearest watering hole and pump the employees for info.
If they ask you a question that you don't know don't assume that you understand the question. Many times I have realized later that I didn't understand what they wanted for whatever reason and I actually knew the answer. Restate the question to them and ask for more info.
Remember that employers are more and more looking for a person that gets along with others.

 

[garebo]

One thing i can add, having been on the other end, that is, in hiring people.
I wanted to hear that they will show up on time, not take a lot of time off, can work together with others, like to work with people, really have enthusiasm for the job being offered, these types of things.
You can point all these things out and point out that you really look forward to this job.
This may sound a bit corny, but its not. Some people take a job just to have cash the end of the week, others take the job because they like the work, BIG difference. And i can prove that, all the best people i ever had were people who liked the work, not the money!
So it wont hurt to let them know you like the work.
Good luck, by the way.


Good advice + great people = tek-tips

 

[ceh4702]

I would say a second interview is where they have limited the job down to about 2-5 possible people. Realize that it may be likely that most applicants are not fully qualified. What they really want to see is confidence. Dont be too eager to stess you are willing to learn because this implies you do not know much. Most people out of school do not know much. A+ certification without experience just implies you can pass a test. Smile a lot, be happy, and be prepared to prove you have complete command of the English Language.

I would expect you have to now face some actual techies one on one. A lot of companies have new computers and also old computers. Be prepared for both. You should know both XP and NT related Operating Systems as well as Windows 98SE. Often we cascade computers from more important jobs to the offices of lower eshelon company players. Big boss gets a new computer and then someone else gets his computer, etc.

They may also want you to be able to deal with Network Connection problems or even servers.

You have to beleive you already have the job and the other people are way under-qualified, which is often the case. Then you have to convince them. I had a person tell me one time that you should sit outside their building and watch the employees come out of the office to see how they dressed and acted and then try to act and dress in a way that would seem like you fit their standards. IT Departments can be very different than the rest of the company, but the people that do the hiring may all wear ties.

If you do not like my post feel free to point out your opinion or my errors.

 

[kmcferrin]

Usually a second interview means that they have narrowed the position down to only 2-3 candidates and these are the serious interviews. Depending on who you interviewed with before (HR rep, manager?) you may be interviewing with the department manager, team leader, or other team members. Interviews with team members tend to be tougher than with a manager because managers focus on general knowledge/skills whereas the team members will focus on a narrow subset those skills that is most applicable to their environment.

The keys to these interviews are:

1. Appear competent and confident without being arrogant.

2. Appear friendly and flexible.

3. Appear interested in the work and other team members.

4. Appear humble without being obsequious.

At my company the last time we had to hire a PC Tech we had terrible candidates. After the IT manager whittled the prospects down to three people he brought them in to meet the rest of the team (analysts, developers, and network admin) to see which one was the best fit. At that point it was obvious that we resigned to the fact that we were going to have to educate whoever eventually got the job, but we needed to fill the position ASAP. In this case we went with the most personable candidate. The moral of the story is to never underestimate how much personality and fitting in with the team can help you.